Carlito (@Litocolon279) is a professional wrestler best known for his time in WWE. He sits down with Chris Van Vliet in Indianapolis, IN to discuss his WWE exit and leaving the same time as R-Truth, his time in The Judgment Day and his many one-liners, taking a massive spear from Bron Breakker, if a WWE return might be on the cards, an interesting piece of Carlito merchandise, being asked to sign apples, and more!

Have you ever signed apples?

“Yeah, all the time. I sign fake ones, but a lot of times they’ll bring me a real one. I don’t know why, they’ll be dead, you know, be rotten in a day. But they say they have all kind of plans. They’re gonna put them in a plastic bag or put them in the freezer. Whatever.”

Do they sometimes ask you to bite one side and then you sign on the other side?

“What I’m asked the most is to spit in their face. They go, ‘How much you charge to spit in my face?’ I’m like, why would anybody even want that, number one. Number two, I think that’s a lawsuit. I mean, they could come back and sue me. Please stop asking this request. I don’t do it.”

Did the WWE release come as a surprise? 

“No, because my contract expired.” 

But they could have renewed it?

“They could have renewed it, but I never went to them. They never came to me. So we never spoke or anything. I just was ready for whatever. I kind of shot myself in the foot because I signed the shorter deal and the usual. So I guess I bet against myself.”

Could you have been like, I would prefer some more time. Did you sign for a year?

“I signed for two years. They wanted me for three, and I signed for two because I didn’t think it was gonna go as good as it did. So, as I said, I bet against myself, and I would have got an extra year, and then my contract would expire. But ended up losing a year. But that’s all right.” 

You were part of such a great thing with Judgment Day. Yeah, it was surprising that just all of a sudden you’re not there

“I still had two weeks left. I just wish they would have written me off somehow. That’s my only, that’s the only thing that I didn’t like. I’m a professional bro, not being in WWE is not the end of the world. So I was like, gladly come in, and you didn’t want my services, just write me off.” 

What particular lines were you most proud of?

“I think the one I get a lot is, ‘Looks hard to me,’ or something that, wasn’t my line. That’s one of the few that wasn’t my line. I don’t know who came up with that, one of the writers or something. But yeah, that’s one of the lines I get the most.”

That week where you were already released, then R-Truth gets released. There was a lot of anger from fans. You guys were the main focus of the comedic angles, and for that week, you’re both gone. Were you feeling the love during that time?

“Yeah. That’s going back to why I signed the short deal. I wanted people to care when I was going to leave the company. So I felt that people cared, it was great. People cared when I left. So I didn’t want to be those guys that, towards the end, you don’t see him on TV, and then he gets released or this contract expires, but nobody even notices. So I was glad that people noticed.”

Was there any conversation about bringing you back?

“No, it was no conversation, either way. I never spoke to them, they never spoke to me, just kind of let it run out.”

I feel like there’s so much stuff that you were able to do with them that if you weren’t given that, I don’t know where you would have fit into the show 

“Me neither. Yeah, I don’t know, because I’ve never been Hunter’s favorite. I don’t think he gets Carlito or the character. So it is what it is. But I was gonna make whatever I did work. So Judgment Day came by, and it was fun for me.”

You really saw the evolution of Dominik Mysterio from what he started as to what he’s now become. You were working with him, week in, week out, with the Judgment Day. What did that evolution look like to you?

“He’s a rock star. The way he’s turned into a superstar. I think he’s probably gonna be one of the biggest guys in the business one day. So yeah, it’s great to see where he started, and then now finding himself. They’re really getting into the Dirty Dom character.”

Do you think he’s a future world champion?

“I think he just needs to gain some weight, I think. I think he can be World Champion.”

Bron Breakker broke you in half with that spear!

“Yeah, he’s fast, and it still hurts today. But I’m glad everyone had a little viral moment there. I saw the memes, it was funny.

Was it painful?

“Wrestling-wise, painful? Yeah, it’s not great. I mean, I don’t recommend it to everybody, but yeah, I survived.”

Are you getting to the point now, in your career where you’re like, how much longer do I want to do this? 

“Oh yeah, I’m getting there. I still got a little bit left in the tank. Not that I don’t want to do it anymore, just focusing more on the exit plan.”

What’s that look like?

“It looks pretty good, man. The WWE run helped out a lot with that, with the retirement plan. So, yeah, a couple more years, and then I can ride off into the sunset.” 

So what do you think, 5 more years? 10 more?

“No, probably around 5. 5 should be the goal.”

You’re known for spitting the apple. You had a t-shirt with an apple on it that said, Do you spit or swallow?

“Yes, I can’t believe Stephanie approved that shirt, because even for back then, that was still [risque].”

Whose idea was it for that? 

“I think it was mine. I remember pitching it to Stephanie, and then her coming back, like a week or two later. Oh, yeah, we approved it.”

What was supposed to happen with the Raquel love storyline that you had?

“Another thing, just like I was not the main focus of the Judgment Day. They were always Dom and Liv, so it’s these ideas they threw apart. But then there would be no follow-up. So Raquel and I would do little things to keep it going. So it’s kind of up to us. That was another thing, because it was another thing I could work off. Because going back to what I said, it’s probably this guy that doesn’t get the girl, so this was kind of the way I could be goofed by he to make it more comedic. So that was, yeah, those are just little things that we would do. But the origin that they said one week, and then after that, they didn’t bring it up anymore.”

Was this leading to you guys would kiss on camera, or something like that?

“I don’t know about that. Like I said, it was kind of just her and I just keeping the thing going. I remember, I don’t know if it was on Twitter or something, when this whole thing with Raquel started, somebody posted, ‘Isn’t Carlito like super old?'”

Do you feel like you had to be a pro wrestler?

“It’s funny, kind of, I guess so, because all my jobs were related. So being a wrestler was just the last evolution. But looking back, though, I’d do it again. I just think about having a nine-to-five. I mean, I’m just glad that nowadays, still, I’ve never had a nine to five. So I’m kind of glad the wrestling thing worked out.”

I’ve always wanted to ask you about this match you had. It’s you and Kurt Angle versus Hulk, Hogan and Shawn Michaels. How did this end up coming together?

“I think it was building towards Michaels and Hogan. I think he turned on Hogan after that match? So, just something to set up him turning on Hogan. I don’t know. I remember I just got beat up by Hulk the whole match. But it was cool. I got to take the leg drop. I got to see all the stuff.”

What is Carlito grateful for?

“Wrestling, health and my family.”

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